GameDay: Hawaii vs Washington

This is it. Biggest game in UH history since last week. Gotta win this one. All the marbles, baby!

Hawaii News:

Stephen Tsai writes that after a huge delay, the Huskies finally arrived last night.

Washington's scheduled flight was severely delayed yesterday, and the team spent nearly nine hours waiting in the Sea-Tac International Airport.The plane left at 6:15 p.m. Pacific time, and arrived in Honolulu at about 9:30 p.m.

The article continues with quotes from coaches and players on the bigness of this game, and how some UH players played through injury against Boise and will play through them against Washington.

"We know how long people have waited for this," defensive tackle Michael Lafaele said.

It is why several players, including Lafaele, are playing despite injuries.

Linebacker Adam Leonard has a fractured right hand that makes it difficult to hold a pen.

Right slotback Ryan Grice-Mullins has 90 receptions despite a fractured finger on his right hand. Which finger?

"This one," he said, laughing, as he gives the finger to a reporter.

Lafaele has a fracture in his right hand, a sprained left wrist, a strained right knee and tightness in his left quadriceps.

Dave Reardon's gameday preview has great advice for fans from Colt Brennan as well as from Reardon himself.

"Everyone I know is saying, 'BCS, BCS,' " star quarterback Colt Brennan said. "If everyone really wants that to be a reality, all the fans, everyone out there, they really need to focus on Washington. Washington is a good football team. We have another war this Saturday and we're going to need another great performance by everybody, players included."

OK fans, focus. Here's your game plan: Make noise when Hawaii's defense is on the field, do not when the offense is out there. And don't rush the field and steal helmets again.

Too funny. The page also has Dave's key matchup, a profile of Washington QB Jack Locker by Brian McInnis, and a profile of Adam Leonard, by Billy Hull.

Stephen Tsai's gameday preview, which breaks down the offense, defense and special teams of UH and UW, is mostly in .GIF format for some reason. Here's an excerpt from the text portion:

"They're going to be ready for us," UH quarterback Colt Brennan said. "It's not going to be easy."

And the Huskies have one of the most dynamic quarterbacks in the West.

Jake Locker "is a phenomenal athlete," UH defensive secondary coach Rich Miano said. "His running speed, quickness, and his ability to make people miss, those are the reasons he's a great quarterback."

And Dave Reardon takes another look at the matchup and what it means, and has some news about parking, security and transit.

UPDATE: Forgot to include this Ferd Lewis article comparing the haves (BCS teams) vs the have-nots (non-BCS teams) in college football.


Washington News:

Don Ruiz of The News Tribune has a game preview. Here's an excerpt about Colt:

Brennan is second in total offense, fourth in passing efficiency and could use a big game on national television to clinch an invitation to the Heisman Trophy ceremonies in New York.

“He’s one of the best quarterbacks in the country, if not the best,” UW offensive coordinator Tim Lappano said. “And he’s accurate. That’s what I really marvel about that system: how accurate that kid is. He doesn’t miss many. If you’ve got somebody open, the ball is going to be there.”

Molly Yanity of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer has a game preview, and discusses the Huskies' mistake-prone defense.

All season, defensive players have talked about mental lapses, "little" mistakes, and how good they are despite the results.

"We are a good defense," senior end Greyson Gunheim said after last Saturday's 42-35 loss to Washington State in which the Cougars' game-winning touchdown came when the Huskies defense appeared to be in two different sets.

"We just don't play like it all the time."

John Boyle of HeraldNet has a preview, with quotes from members of the Huskies' D on facing the UH offense.

"Proving (the doubters) wrong would be a good thing," safety Darin Harris said. "Especially in the secondary. They say we're the weak point of the defense and that kind of stuff. So it's a great challenge for us, and we accept the challenge."

"We plan on getting to that quarterback, because he obviously throws the ball pretty well," defensive tackle Jordan Reffett said. "We've got to get to him, we've got to take some shots at him and see if we can get him rattled.

The article also has some great compliments from Fresno State coach Pat Hill.

"The passing game is all about timing and spacing, and their timing and spacing is excellent," Fresno State coach Pat Hill said. "Also, don't ever underestimate the speed of the Hawaii receivers.

"Oregon's a good football team with very good receivers. Hawaii might not be as big as their receivers, but I felt they were a lot faster. They can really run.

"That's the thing about them. Those receivers can run, they know what they're doing, they've been together for two and three years, and they've stayed healthy. Colt's got a great release. It's very hard to get to them, because they get the ball out so quickly. They have got big-time speed."

Here's some game notes from the Seattle Times.

Also from the Times, Bob Condotta talks to Husky coaches and players about what this game means to them and how they plan to win.

"Me, I love it," said receiver Marcel Reece of Washington's status against undefeated Hawaii, which needs a win to get to a Bowl Championship Series bowl game, likely the Sugar, for the first time in school history.

"We don't get a chance to go to a bowl game this year, which was our goal, but we do get to try and spoil something for a good team, and that's something that you can look forward to," Reece said.

The Huskies also want to try to simply keep Hawaii's offense, which is averaging 47.2 points, off the field.

Washington coaches said they plan to do that by trying to chew up clock with the running game, confident they can do so against a Hawaii defense that doesn't quite compare to its offense.

"It's going to be a challenge," said offensive coordinator Tim Lappano. "But I think we are probably one of the better offenses they've faced, so hopefully we can move it on them."

Should be a great game. GO WARRIORS!!!!!